Broken China Doll
by: pandorabox82
Chapter Two: In This Vicious WorldAfter Petunia had seen her boys off, she brought out the picture album again, opening once more to the pictures of her and Lily. Harry had made them some tea and was sitting at the kitchen table, waiting for her. She set the album before him, and watched him once more take in the sight of his mother as a child. Heavily, she sat down across from him, wanting the expanse of table between them to keep her from getting too close to him.
"Are we skipping into the future, Aunt Petunia?"
"Yes, because life was normal up until the summer pictured here. Mama had finally finished her nursing degree, and had gotten a job at the hospital. She worked the night shift, so she could see us during the day, when she wasn't sleeping, and Father watched us at night…"
~ Summer 1966 ~
"Smile for the camera, girls!" Marigold called out, but Lily and Petunia were having too much fun running around the beach to listen to their mother. Marigold snapped a few pictures anyway, hoping one would turn out decent.
Walking over to Matthew, she smiled and handed him the camera. "This is our last holiday of summer, and it's only begun. We should probably get going soon; I have to get adjusted to this new cycle."
He smiled at her and stood up. "I'm so proud of you finishing your degree, luv. Now we'll be able to move from the apartment into a nice house in a good neighbourhood for the girls' sake," he replied, giving her a quick kiss. Hand in hand, they walked back to their girls, and helped them gather all the things they'd brought.
Once in the car and on the way home, Petunia looked at her sister and asked, "Will the other kids be able to read, too?"
"If they've had big sisters who've taught them to." Lily smiled at her little sister, who'd really taken to reading since Lily had shown her how. Somehow, she knew that Petunia would be ahead of most of her class when she started in the fall. Her sister's head fell against her shoulder, asleep, and Lily smiled down at her. Finally, they would be together, not separated, as they had been since Lily had started school. 'I'll protect her from the bullies,' Lily thought, knowing Petunia would most likely be picked on, starting school a whole year earlier than most students.
Lily rested her head on Petunia's her eyes closing gently, a smile on her lips. 'Together, forever,' was her last thought before she drifted off to sleep.
Neither girl noticed being carried into the house by their parents, they were so deeply asleep. They were placed in the same bed, and Petunia curled up against Lily and they slept on. Quietly, Matthew and Marigold slipped out of the room, leaving their girls in peace.
"Tomorrow's the day, then. I'm so glad you're staying home the entire day to ensure I get some sleep. What would I do without you, Matthew?"
"Oh, you'd survive somehow, Marigold. Now, remember, lots of tea for the caffeine to keep you awake. I'll see you in the morning, unless…"
"Unless what, Matthew? Oh, right, never mind." She kissed him, and let him lead her into their bedroom, happily giving in to him for the last time until their schedules matched once more.
The next morning, the girls woke up to breakfast in bed. "Papa, what're you doing?" Lily asked.
"Treating my girls like the princesses they are. Now, Mama's asleep, so you can't be too loud. If you're good, I'll take you down to the park this afternoon."
"Really, Papa? The park? But don't you have to go to work?" Petunia asked.
"Not today. It's my last day on holiday, so I'll be with you the entire day."
The girls were excited, as it was rare that they had a whole day alone with their father. Hurriedly, they ate their food, and ran outside the apartment complex, trying to play as quietly as they could. The hours slipped by quickly, and soon their mother was calling them in for lunch.
"Mama, were we too loud?" Petunia asked, giving her mother a hug.
"No, dear. You were fine. This is the time I need to be up, though."
"Good, because I want to go to the park. I wish you could come with us."
"Yeah! That would be so much fun!" Lily piped in as she wrapped her arms around her mother.
"I'd love to, girls. But this job is really important to me. Don't worry, though, your papa's home, and he'll take good care of you. Now come inside for lunch." Marigold placed her arms around her daughters and herded them into their apartment.
They sat around the table, eating their lunch and talking. Petunia was quiet, though. She didn't want her mama to go to work and leave her alone. She silently finished eating and waited for the others to finish. When they'd done so, she helped her mama clear the table, taking the dishes over to the sink where she began to wash them. As Lily dried them, she handed the dishes to her mother to put away. "Petunia, you like to help Mama cook, so that's going to be your job from now on. Every day, you're going to help me get lunch ready, until you can do it on your own. Lily will get breakfast for the two of you this summer, but you're getting big and need to know these kind of things. All right, honey?"
Petunia grinned. Of course it was all right for her to help her mama with lunch! That meant she'd be spending more time with Mama, which suited her just fine. "Yes, Mama," she replied.
"Oh, Mama, do I have to make breakfast? I'm no good in the kitchen, you've said so yourself," Lily whined, a small pout on her pretty face.
"Until Petunia has mastered lunch, you're responsible for breakfast/ Later, we'll see how things are progressing, and give out different chores. Now, I must go, as I have to be there a little early, first day and all. Be good for Papa, and I'll see you tomorrow." Marigold untied her apron and handed it to Lily before pulling her and Petunia in to a tight hug. "Oh, I love you so much my darling blossoms." Kissing their heads, she broke the embrace and grabbed her purse off the counter and walked out of the kitchen and into the hall.
Lily and Petunia ran after her and watched her put on a light summer jacket to shield herself from the mist that had sprung up during lunch. Matthew joined them in the hall, coming from the living room. He pulled his wife into a tight embrace and kissed her soundly. Marigold blushed, embarrassed at the display of affection in front of their girls, and moved to the door. Opening it, she stepped outside, and then waved to her family before going to her car and taking off.
Matthew shut the door and turned to his girls. "What are you going to do now?" he asked.
"I'm going to read," Lily replied.
"I'm going to play with my dollies," said Petunia with a small smile.
"I have a better idea. Let's play doctor," Matthew said, a feral glint in his eye, a look Petunia had often seen before when he looked at her or Lily. "I'll be the doctor, Petunia can be the nurse, and Lily will be the patient. Come on, girls, why the long faces? This will be fun, I promise."
Reluctantly, the girls followed him upstairs to his bedroom, following his instructions. Matthew had Lily lie on the bed, while Petunia drew a sheet over her. Slowly, he approached the bed and leaned over Lily, who was trying to tell herself that everything was okay. Suddenly, Matthew pounced on her, tickling her sides until she burst out laughing. He continued to tickle her until she was begging for him to stop.
"Me next, Papa! I want to be the patient now!" Petunia exclaimed when she saw what fun Lily was having. Hurriedly, she crawled into the bed and pulled the sheet over her. Lily scrambled out of the bed and left the room, telling her father she was going to read.
"Looks like it's just the doctor and his patient," Matthew said lowly, staring at his daughter. He waited until he knew she wasn't expecting him before pouncing on her and tickling her like he had Lily. When he had her laughing so hard from the feeling, he reached around with one of his hands and pinched her bottom. Immediately Petunia's laughter stopped, and she stared at him. "I'm sorry sweetie, my had slipped."
"I want to go play with Lily now," she replied, a frown marring her face.
Matthew nodded his assent, and Petunia slipped off the bed and ran into Lily's room. When she got a good look at her beloved older sister, she was shocked to find her crying on her bed. 'Lily never cries,' Petunia thought as she took a seat on the bed. "Did he pinch you too, Lily?" she hesitantly asked, somehow already knowing the answer.
Lily nodded and began to cry harder than before. Petunia reached out with her left hand and stroked her sister's soft, red, hair. Trying to stifle the yawn that signalled it was just about time for her afternoon nap, Petunia scooted down on the bed in order to lay down next to her sister. She felt Lily's arms hesitantly wrap around her waist and Petunia snuggled close to her sister, falling quickly asleep...
The days soon fell in to a regular pattern. The touches from their father began to become more frequent and they drew closer to each other, Lily defending her little sister as best she could. They knew that what he was doing wasn't right, but they didn't want to bother their mother, as her job was very stressful, and she always came home tired and cranky.
Right before the school term was about to begin, Marigold was able to get a weekend off. They went as a family to Surrey. Stopping in front of a little brick house, both Matthew and Marigold got out of the car and went up to the door. Lily and Petunia continued to sit in the back seat of the car until their mother beckoned to them from the porch. Slowly, they got out of the car and approached the house.
"Isn't it beautiful, my blossoms? And there are three bedrooms; so you'll each have your own now. We move in tomorrow. Now, let's go up and pick out your rooms. Oh, wait, before we do go in, stand on the steps and smile, girls. I want a picture to remember this moment by."
Lily and Petunia stood on the porch, Lily's arm around her sister. Together, they tried to smile, but their smile seemed forced, never quite reaching their eyes, unable to chase away the haunted looks that were now as natural to them as breathing. After the picture was taken, Marigold swept them into a tight hug.
"Oh my little blossoms, we'll be so happy here," she whispered, before letting them go and ushering them into the house.
Slowly, Petunia closed the photo album, her mind still fixed somewhere in the past. She jumped slightly when she felt Harry's hand cover hers, which was still on the album. Looking into his eyes, she whispered, "We were happy once, even if only for a short time."
"Aunt Petunia, I –"
"No questions, Harry," she interrupted. "I don't believe I'd have any answers. Now, you'd best get to work out in the garden. They'll be home soon." She stared at the table, not really seeing anything, tears coursing down her cheeks.
Harry wanted to reach out to his aunt, say something to her, anything to make her feel better. But he was stopped by his mind telling him she wasn't ready for him yet to be the nephew to her he was supposed to be. He settled for rubbing her shoulder lightly on his way outside.
Petunia took a shaky breath, and stood from the table, taking the album with her as she exited the room. Going into the living room, she set the album on one of the shelves of the end table, and then lay down on the couch. She was soon fast asleep, and so missed Harry come in from the garden and begin supper for her.
